Fatal Error: No Screens Found
From MEPIS Documentation Wiki
!!! Warning! The info contained in this article pertains to older versions of MEPIS !!!
When booting after install, if you get an error message saying no screens found or similar then try the following
PLEASE NOTE TEXT IN BRACKETS ARE EXAMPLES ONLY, YOU SHOULD ENTER VALUES THAT RELATE TO YOUR HARDWARE
1. At command prompt type xf86config
This program will create a basic XF86Config file, based on menu selections you make.
The XF86Config file usually resides in /usr/X11R6/etc/X11 or /etc/X11. A sample XF86Config file is supplied with XFree86; it is configured for a standard VGA card and monitor with 640x480 resolution. This program will ask for a pathname when it is ready to write the file.
You can either take the sample XF86Config as a base and edit it for your configuration, or let this program produce a base XF86Config file for your configuration and fine-tune it.
Before continuing with this program, make sure you know what video card you have, and preferably also the chipset it uses and the amount of video memory on your video card. SuperProbe may be able to help with this.
Press enter to continue, or ctrl-c to abort
2. In this screen select your mouse model, The recommended protocol is Auto. If you have a very old mouse
or don't want OS support or auto detection, and you have a two-button
or three-button serial mouse, it is most likely of type Microsoft, ( 7. )
MAKE YOUR SELECTION AND PRESS ENTER
3. If your mouse has only two buttons, it is recommended that you enable
Emulate3Buttons.
MAKE YOUR SELECTION AND PRESS ENTER
4. Now give the full device name that the mouse is connected to, for example
/dev/tty00. Just pressing enter will use the default, /dev/mouse.
MAKE YOUR SELECTION AND PRESS ENTER
5. Please select one of the following keyboard types that is the better
description of your keyboard. If nothing really matches,
choose 1 (Generic 101-key PC)
Enter a number to choose the keyboard. (4)
MAKE YOUR SELECTION AND PRESS ENTER
6. Enter a number to choose the country, pressing enter allows you to view more countries (88)
MAKE YOUR SELECTION AND PRESS ENTER
7. Please enter a variant name for 'gb' layout. Or just press enter
for default variant (gb)
MAKE YOUR SELECTION AND PRESS ENTER
8. Please answer the following question with either 'y' or 'n'.
Do you want to select additional XKB options (group switcher,
group indicator, etc.)? (N)
MAKE YOUR SELECTION AND PRESS ENTER
Now we want to set the specifications of the monitor. The two critical
parameters are the vertical refresh rate, which is the rate at which the
the whole screen is refreshed, and most importantly the horizontal sync rate,
which is the rate at which scanlines are displayed.
The valid range for horizontal sync and vertical sync should be documented in the manual of your monitor. If in doubt, check the monitor database /usr/X11R6/lib/X11/doc/Monitors to see if your monitor is there.
Press enter to continue, or ctrl-c to abort.
9. select one of the predefined ranges below that correspond to industry- standard monitor types, or give a specific range.
It is VERY IMPORTANT that you do not specify a monitor type with a horizontal sync range that is beyond the capabilities of your monitor. If in doubt, choose a conservative setting.
hsync in kHz; monitor type with characteristic modes 1 31.5; Standard VGA, 640x480 @ 60 Hz 2 31.5 - 35.1; Super VGA, 800x600 @ 56 Hz 3 31.5, 35.5; 8514 Compatible, 1024x768 @ 87 Hz interlaced (no 800x600) 4 31.5, 35.15, 35.5; Super VGA, 1024x768 @ 87 Hz interlaced, 800x600 @ 56 Hz 5 31.5 - 37.9; Extended Super VGA, 800x600 @ 60 Hz, 640x480 @ 72 Hz 6 31.5 - 48.5; Non-Interlaced SVGA, 1024x768 @ 60 Hz, 800x600 @ 72 Hz 7 31.5 - 57.0; High Frequency SVGA, 1024x768 @ 70 Hz 8 31.5 - 64.3; Monitor that can do 1280x1024 @ 60 Hz 9 31.5 - 79.0; Monitor that can do 1280x1024 @ 74 Hz 10 31.5 - 82.0; Monitor that can do 1280x1024 @ 76 Hz 11 Enter your own horizontal sync range
Enter your choice (1-11):
10. You must indicate the vertical sync range of your monitor. You can either
select one of the predefined ranges below that correspond to industry-
standard monitor types, or give a specific range. For interlaced modes,
the number that counts is the high one (e.g. 87 Hz rather than 43 Hz).
1 50-70 2 50-90 3 50-100 4 40-150 5 Enter your own vertical sync range
Enter your choice: (1-5)
11. You must now enter a few identification/description strings, namely an
identifier, a vendor name, and a model name. Just pressing enter will fill
in default names.
The strings are free-form, spaces are allowed. Enter an identifier for your monitor definition: ( CTX PR711T )
12. Now we must configure video card specific settings. At this point you can choose to make a selection out of a database of video card definitions. Because there can be variation in Ramdacs and clock generators even between cards of the same model, it is not sensible to blindly copy the settings (e.g. a Device section). For this reason, after you make a selection, you will still be asked about the components of the card, with the settings from the chosen database entry presented as a strong hint.
The database entries include information about the chipset, what driver to run, the Ramdac and ClockChip, and comments that will be included in the Device section. However, a lot of definitions only hint about what driver to run (based on the chipset the card uses) and are untested.
If you can't find your card in the database, there's nothing to worry about. You should only choose a database entry that is exactly the same model as your card; choosing one that looks similar is just a bad idea (e.g. a GemStone Snail 64 may be as different from a GemStone Snail 64+ in terms of hardware as can be).
Do you want to look at the card database? ( Y )
Pressing enter will allow you to scroll through an A-Z of video cards
Enter a number to choose the corresponding card definition. Press enter for the next page, q to continue configuration.
MAKE YOUR SELECTION AND PRESS ENTER
13. It is probably a good idea to use the same approximate amount as that detected
by the server you intend to use. If you encounter problems that are due to the
used server not supporting the amount memory you have, specify the maximum
amount supported by the server.
How much video memory do you have on your video card:
1 256K 2 512K 3 1024K 4 2048K 5 4096K 6 8192K 7 16384K 8 32768K 9 65536K 10 131072K 11 262144K 12 Other
Enter your choice: ( 9 )
MAKE YOUR SELECTION AND PRESS ENTER
14. You must now enter a few identification/description strings, namely an
identifier, a vendor name, and a model name. Just pressing enter will fill
in default names (possibly from a card definition).
The strings are free-form, spaces are allowed. Enter an identifier for your video card definition: ( vesa )
15. For each depth, a list of modes (resolutions) is defined. The default resolution that the server will start-up with will be the first listed mode that can be supported by the monitor and card. Currently it is set to:
"1280x1024" "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480" for 8-bit "1280x1024" "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480" for 16-bit "1280x1024" "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480" for 24-bit
Modes that cannot be supported due to monitor or clock constraints will be automatically skipped by the server.
1 Change the modes for 8-bit (256 colors) 2 Change the modes for 16-bit (32K/64K colors) 3 Change the modes for 24-bit (24-bit color) 4 The modes are OK, continue.
Enter your choice: ( 4 )
MAKE YOUR SELECTION AND PRESS ENTER
17. Please specify which color depth you want to use by default:
1 1 bit (monochrome) 2 4 bits (16 colors) 3 8 bits (256 colors) 4 16 bits (65536 colors) 5 24 bits (16 million colors)
Enter a number to choose the default depth. ( 5 )
MAKE YOUR SELECTION AND PRESS ENTER
18. I am going to write the XF86Config file now. Make sure you don't accidently overwrite a previously configured one.
Do you want it written to the current directory as 'XF86Config'?
Press Y to write and save
you will now be returned to the prompt so type startx
